A family affair in the premier class

Aleix and Pol Espargaro will be racing in MotoGP™ in 2014, but they will not be the first brothers to line up on the same premier class grid.

Aleix and Pol Espargaro will be racing in MotoGP™ in 2014, but they will not be the first brothers to line up on the same premier class grid.

There are a number of milestones with respect to brothers racing together in the premier-class - which the Espargaros can measure themselves against:

- The last time that two brothers competed together in a MotoGP race was at the USA GP in 2010 at Laguna Seca, with Nicky Hayden on the factory Ducati and Roger Lee Hayden riding as a replacement for Randy de Puniet on the LCR Honda. Both riders scored points: Nicky finishing 5th and Roger Lee 11th.

- The last time that brothers were on the full-time entry list for the MotoGP class was in 2004, when Kenny Roberts was riding the Suzuki and Kurtis Roberts was on the Proton KR.

- In addition to the Roberts brothers in 2004, other sets of brothers have competed together full-time in the premier-class in the same season; Nobuatsu and Takuma Aoki in 1997, Nobuatsu and Haruchika Aoki in 1999, Bernard and Marc Garcia (1994 & 95), Dominique and Christian Sarron (1989).

- The last time that brothers finished together on the podium in the premier-class was at the Imola Grand Prix in 1997, when Nobuatsu Aoki finished second and Takuma Aoki finished third.

- The only other occasion that brothers have finished together on the podium in the premier-class was at the Argentine GP of 1962, when Juan Salatino finished second and Eduardo was third.